This invention relates to an automotive type utility trailer which when disassembled forms its own storage container.
It sometimes becomes necessary to transport with the family automobile more cargo than that automobile was designed to carry, and upon these occasions one must either resort to overloading the vehicle or using some type of auxiliary cargo carrier designed for an automobile. The first alternative produces scenes which have become an American caricature: the sedan fairly bursting with children and camping equipment with the driver pressed against the steering wheel. The inconvenience and danger of this mode of travel scarcely needs to be commented upon. As a result, the production of auxiliary cargo carriers is an active industry and it is that industry to which this invention is addressed.
Two popular types of auxiliary auto carriers are tow behind utility trailers and rooftop carriers. Rooftop carriers are attractive in some respects; for example, they do not alter vehicle length or affect driver vision and once in place, they require little attention. Furthermore, they do not interfere with vehicle backing and do not appreciably affect "feel". As a result this type of carrier has enjoyed considerable commercial success; however autotop carriers have certain notorious shortcomings. Chief among these is they dramatically increase the height of the vehicle and hence its frontal area which at highway speeds results in dramatic increases in aerodynamic drag and fuel consumption. A second shortcoming is that the greatly increased height of the vehicle may make it unable to enter commercial or residential parking garages without first removing the carrier. Another factor is that placement of luggage so high on the vehicle can in some instances result in a dangerously high center of gravity.
It will be appreciated that the adverse affects of cartop carriers are amplified when applied to modern, lightweight vehicles designed particularly for fuel economy objectives.
It is now therefore appropriate to focus attention on utility trailers. Recognizing that a major drawback of many travelers is the amount of garage space they consume, this invention has been made with a view to reducing trailer storage size. In fact, a primary object of the invention is to provide a collapsible trailer that can be readily moved through doors and the like, and is capable of storage almost anywhere--in a closet, for example, or even in the trunk of the automobile.
A second object is to provide a collapsible trailer which forms its own storage container when disassembled.
Another object is to construct a collapsible trailer with a high expansion ratio, that is, very compact when collapsed yet robust and capable of accepting a large volume payload when fully assembled.
Small utility trailers having a single yoke with a ball-type hitch are notoriously difficult to back up without "jacknifing". Accordingly, a further object is to provide the public a utility trailer capable of pivoting around a transverse horizontal axis with respect to its towing vehicle, yet incapable of relative motion around a vertical axis. This restraint absolutely prevents jacknifing when backing up, and results in a more drivable trailer less susceptible to being injured by its own towing vehicle.
Still another object is to produce a utility trailer having improved stability, yet greater mobility, when separated from its towing vehicle, such as easy manipulation in wheelbarrow fashion.
The invention is embodied in a trailer having a bed and removable peripheral walls capped by a removable top, wherein the walls and other parts of the trailer can be removed and stored within a container formed by the trailer bed and the top alone. The top is capable of mating with either the upper edges of the trailer walls or with the bed itself, in order to provide alternative expanded and collapsed modes.